


You, Me and The Stars

by GalracatKeith (SpaceDanster)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Day 12, Keith messes up while on a mission with the generals, Keitor Month 2020, Lotor does not approve, M/M, Naxzela, Not Beta Read, There is talk about naxzela and Keith's not so good state of mind, They both get emotional, there will be tears
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:07:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22232257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpaceDanster/pseuds/GalracatKeith
Summary: Day 12: NaxzelaThe ship creaks and hums around him, and Keith wonders, not for the first time if he made a mistake. Lotor had specifically told them to be careful, to not trust anyone who could possibly be a threat to their group. Still, Keith had always been known as one to stretch the rules, if not entirely forget the rules existed in the first place.Okay, so maybe rushing on without backup had been a bad idea, and he could easily tell the other general was equal parts experated and expectant of his actions. Well, Axca could scold him all she wanted later.Granted, if there was a later to be had.
Relationships: Keith/Lotor (Voltron)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 78
Collections: Keitor Month 2020





	You, Me and The Stars

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I had originally planned to write more for Keitor month, but as it is , I think this is gonna be the only one I'll have time to write. Probably a bunch of typos up in here, but I'll edit it one of these days when I have more time on my hands.

The ship creaks and hums around him, and Keith wonders, not for the first time if he made a mistake. Lotor had specifically told them to be careful, to not trust anyone who could possibly be a threat to their group. Still, Keith had always been known as one to stretch the rules, if not entirely forget the rules existed in the first place.

“Keith, we need regroup. Get back to our position, now.” Axca’s clipped tone sounded off in his ear, momentarily snapping him out of his musings. Okay, so maybe rushing on without backup had been a bad idea, and he could easily tell the other general was equal parts experated and expectant of his actions. Well, she could scold him all she wanted later. Granted, if there was a later to be had. 

Another rumble sounded through the ship, causing Keith to stumble out of his hiding place with a subdued yelp. His eyes turned towards the distracted sentries ahead with a low curse, praying he could reach the emergency pods before the ship tears itself apart. If he doesn’t...Well, then he at least don’t have to live through one of Axca’s reprimands again. He could already hear Ezor and Zethrid not even trying to hold back their glee, Zethrid’s booming laughter bouncing off the walls of their ship. He might just have lost count how many times his shenanigans had left Axca rolling her eyes so hard he feared they might just pop out of her head. Despite his inability to keep himself out of harm's way, Keith knew she cared. They all did.

His expression turned soft at the gentle memory of his companions, affection fluttering inside his chest at how this ragtag group of half galra had become a family to him.While they might not have been entirely on board with Lotor’s idea when Keith first joined their crew, none of them had treated him any differently. Where he might have expected the same hostility the paladins, _his old friends_ , had shown him...There was none. True to his word, Lotor had told Keith he needn’t worry what the prince’s generals might think of him. They were not just a crew, but a family who had found each other when all else seemed lost.

Well then, unless he got moving soon, the group would be short yet another member.

Keith stepped forward from his hiding place with the intention of slicing through the few sentries standing in his way, only for his cover to be blown when another explosion rocked the ship. 

“Keith, get out of there now. That’s an order.” To his surprise, it wasn’t Axca’s voice that rang through his helmet with an increasingly worried pitch. It was Lotor’s. A frown was firmly in place as he moved to dodge another shot, the blade in his hand at the ready. As much as he was known for running towards danger, in this case, he wasn’t given much of a choice. The sentries were easily dealt with by a few swipes of his blade, a voice again breaking through the static in his ears. “Keith.”

“I’m just outside the control room, I can make it.” He couldn’t help but let the annoyance get the better of him, despite knowing better than to argue with Lotor about this. Keith heard Lotor’s sound of disapproval, but ignored it in favor of running towards the room waiting for him. With a slap of his palm on the sensor, it granted him easy access the control room. He didn’t expect to find it empty however. The cowardly commander had probably already evacuated before the battle had started fully.

“Hah, got you!” A small laugh slipped past his lips, fingers closing around the information chip embedded into the console. In hindsight, he really should have paid more attention to the battlecruiser peppering the smaller ship full of holes. The small ship he was currently on.

_Fuck._

The realization hit him a moment too late, an explosion bursting through the door behind him and sending him barreling into the emptiness of space. Keith felt his heart hammering wildly in his chest, desperately trying to correct the course sending him further and further away from their rendezvous position. God, if he managed to get back to Sincline in one piece, he would never hear the end of it. Ezor was going to have a field day with this information.

Keith reached out as scraps of metal floated past him, succeeding on his second try to haul himself into a sitting position on one of them. Dread curled in his stomach, knowing well his oxygen levels were far too low to find himself floating away from the battle that still raged on. It was hardly the first time he was facing his own mortality, but at least back then his sacrifices had reason.To save the Defenders of the universe, to exchange his life so many more could live. 

It was a sacrifice he had been willing to make, and would do again if given the chance. If there was anything The Blades had taught him, it was that the mission was more important than the individual. He was simply a means to an end.

He was a tic away from launching himself off the scraps when the remaining battleship exploded into a rain of fire, and none else but Sincline herself emerged from the inferno.

He was in trouble now alright.

\--

“Ugh, Axca is gonna kill me.” A resigned sigh left his lips, eyes slipping shut to take in the comfort of feeling the ship humming beneath his feet. He could sense the presence of Sincline all around him, whispering in his ears and numbing the dull pain in his bones. Lotor had been startled the first time Keith had commented on the ships temper, the prince no longer thinking himself to be Sincline’s favorite. Apparently, it was Lotor’s own adoration that bled through the connection he shared with the ship, causing Sincline to chirp conspiringly whenever Keith would linger close to the Prince. Her presence would blanket itself around him in the dead of night, chase away the fears in his mind when Lotor was nowhere to be seen. It reminded him of the bond he once shared with Red and Black, before he had thrown himself to The Blades. Searching for answers, to fill the void inside him. 

Only to find himself more lost than ever.

Thankfully, Lotor had found him before he let it get too far. 

“Oh, I would be more worried about what Lotor will do.” Ezor clicked her tongue and successfully startled him, appearing behind him a moment later with a wide grin. Great, if she was here already it was only a matter of time before the others would follow. 

“You should have seen his face when you went offline.” She added to the fire that was Keith’s guilt, and he refused to look up to meet the bright blues of her eyes. He knew Ezor was right, and that he had put himself in unnecessary danger. The exact opposite of what Lotor had told him to do. 

“You really scared him, you know.” Ezor’s voice was surprisingly quiet when she spoke, forcing Keith to look back at her with a frown. It was unusual to say the least, to see the pained expression painted across her face. It was neither sadness nor pity, but rather the same look that had flickered in Lotor’s eyes when Narti’s fate was brought up.

_Guilt?_

“Keith, may I have a word with you?” He was shaken out of his thoughts at the sound of his name, turning on his heel only to falter at the look he was met with. To any other, Lotor looked no different than usual, with his head held high and voice calm. To any of them, however, and Keith especially, the difference was frightening. 

Lotor’s hands were systematically clenching and unclenching, the uncertainty behind the action only adding to his growing unease. Keith prided himself in being able to read the Prince relatively well, bit by bit having picked away at the wall Lotor had surrounded himself with since he was a child. But now, it was as if his partner had raised a protective barrier to keep them separated- and Keith could almost see the quiet calculations tearing at the seams.

Keith knew better than most that Lotor was far from angry. Upset? Naturally, but never angry with him.  
Lotor was rapidly losing his composure, the slight twitch of the prince’s lips enough of a tell for Keith’s heart to drop well into the pit of his stomach.

“Lotor?”

Lotor’s gaze once again settled on him, worry gnawing at Keith’s insides as the Prince had yet to voice whatever concerns he currently locked away. He belatedly realized Ezor was no longer to be seen in the room, sure enough having disappeared before getting dragged into whatever scolding their leader had ready for the newest addition to their team.

“Follow me.” Keith didn’t need much convincing as Lotor spoke up again, already moving towards the doors when the prince sent him an odd look.He didn’t get much time to think it over, however, Lotor brushing past him without another word. Okay, this was getting weird. No matter the differences they all faced, all of them hailing from vastly different places and planets throughout the universe...Nothing had ever felt quite as disconnecting as the distance growing between them, both physically and emotionally.

“Lotor, what’s wrong? Please, can’t you just tell-” Said Prince stopped abruptly, and Keith could only thank his quick reflexes for managing not to slam his face straight into Lotor’s back. His fleeting relief was quickly wiped off his face when the Prince turned to face him. Keith had seen various different expressions adoring his boyfriend’s face from their time together, but the one currently holding him in a headlock is nothing less than absolute heartbreak.

“Keith, I will not have a repeat of what happened at Naxzela. I will not allow it.” There was a visible tremble to Lotor’s voice as he spoke, and only a moment too late did Keith realize just what the Price was talking about. His blood ran cold at the realization, sweat beading on his forehead as memories of Naxzela once again flashed before his eyes. 

He could feel the tremble in his hands where he had clutched onto the ships controls, knuckles turning white under the pressure. All he could hear was the blaring of warning signals as he locked onto his target, the shield ahead of him approaching at a deadly velocity.  
_The mission is more important than the individual._  
He had to do this. What was one life compared to the entire fate of the universe. For each tic that passed, his ship closed in on the barrier, one step closer to when he would cease to exist. 

He choked back the sob forming in the back of his throat, forcing is eyes closed so tightly the buzzing of stars would be the last he would see. _It’s okay. You get to save the team, Shiro will be alright. Everyone will be alright. It’s okay.  
It’s okay_

“If you do not understand your own worth, how much you mean to us. To me. Then I must have done something unmistakingly wrong.” Lotor reached forward to pull Keith tightly against him, leaning down to press his lips softly against the top of his head. A rush of relief ran through the Prince’s body at the feeling of messy black hair beneath his lips, fingers cupping his lover’s face to tilt his head upwards. Keith was alive, and he was here with him. At this point in time, nothing else mattered. 

“How did you-” Keith finally choked out, blinking back fresh tears as he lifted his head to look up at him.  
“Do not think me a fool, Keith. I have seen more than enough footage from your time here with us, as well as your previous affiliations, to know exactly what you have been up to.” Lotor traced a thumb across the man’s cheekbone, eyes softening considerably. A smile bloomed on his face from the worry shining in Lotor’s eyes, 

“I cannot bear to lose you, Keith. Not to your own reckless actions, or to whatever the Cult of Marmora must have taught you while in their service.” Keith had half the mind to correct him for the name, but quickly changed his mind when Lotor’s bright eyes shone with unshed tears. He felt long slender fingers slip away from his face as Keith reached upwards, successfully tugging Lotor down so he could press their lips softly together. 

“I might have saved you at Naxzela, Keith.” Lotor spoke quietly, treading his fingers mindlessly through the dark locks of the shorter man’s hair. Keith pulled back to look up at him with an apologetic smile, thumbs softly brushing away tears spilling from the Prince’s eyes.  
“But you, for the love of stars, Keith. You saved me. Without you I fear I might have lost myself, lost everyone I have ever cared for.” He continued with a sharp intake of air, the sound of Lotor’s voice cracking miserably driving Keith to instinctively pull the taller galra into a hug. 

“I cannot lose you, My Heart.” Lotor choked out, his knees buckling underneath him. He did not know how he ended up this way, but all at once he found himself seated on his knees, clutching onto Keith’s waist as if his life depended on it. Violent sobs racked his entire body, thousands upon thousands of years of making himself indestructible, undone in a second by a simple kindness. A kindness no one had known him before Keith had come barreling into his life.

“I’m not going anywhere, Lotor.” Keith’s soft voice was a brutal difference compared to the anguished but muffled sound of Lotor’s cries bouncing off the walls. He mirrored Lotor’s actions from earlier, softly brushing his fingers along his boyfriend’s jaw before tilting his head upwards. An impossibly soft smile played on his lips as he leaned back in, his prince as beautiful as ever despite the teartracks branding his violet skin.

_“You have me, Lotor. Until every star in the universe dies, you have me.”_


End file.
